Some monitors fail to distinguish between 95% and 100% black at one end of the greyscale ramp, and 5% and 0% at the other.

You might expect a budget monitor to struggle with this, but the LG, NEC and Samsung displays cope well.

The BenQ, Asus and Hanns G models get through the near black test but have less success with the almost-white one.

HANNS G Hi221DP

Even after calibrating the Asus to get rid of the over-saturated colours, the screen was dark, even at maximum brightness.

The Hanns G, LG and Samsung models offer the best reproduction, with smooth gradients and clear images.

None of the monitors excel in our text test. The Samsung is the strongest, but is still unremarkable. The LG and NEC offer passable reproduction, with the others less clear, especially at low point sizes.

The Hanns G would benefit from a wider adjustable contrast range. On maximum setting it's just about right, but there's nowhere to go if you want more.